The PSC said that the National Sports Associations (NSAs) and the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) does not consider the Philippine dragon boat team members as national athletes.
The Philippine dragon boat team, who call themselves as "Dragon Warriors" has won 5 gold medals and 2 silver medals in the recent International Dragon Boat Federation World Championships in Tampa, Florida.
According to the PSC, a national athlete or team should be given P100,000 for each gold medal won in international tournaments.
The dragon boat team's mother association, the Philippine Dragon Boat Association (PDBF), has been stripped of its status as an NSA by the POC, thus, the dragon boat athletes lost allowances for their training.
Due to financial constraints the Philippine dragon boat team have been cut in half. The team also almost failed to make it to this year's world championships due to lack funds.
However, the private sector saved the day, with Cobra Energy Drink and Philippine Airlines sponsoring the team's airline tickets to Tampa Bay.
Meanwhile the Filipino-Americans, show their support for the Dragon Warriors by giving them food and water while they were competing in the world championships.
Earlier, Senate Resolution 547 was filed by Senator Francis Pangilinan aiming to congratulate the Philippine dragon boat team.
0 comments:
Post a Comment